April 15 (Bloomberg) -- China’s stocks fell, dragging the
Shanghai Composite Index down by 10 percent from its February
high, as data on the nation’s economic growth and industrial
production missed estimates.

The Shanghai Composite fell 1.1 percent to 2,181.94 at the
close, its lowest level since Dec. 24. The economy grew 7.7 in
the first quarter from a year earlier, the National Bureau of
Statistics said today, less than the 8 percent median forecast
in a survey of 41 economists. Industrial production rose 8.9
percent in March, the report showed. That compared with the 10.1
percent median economist forecast.

Economic Data

The Shanghai index has fallen 10 percent from a Feb. 6 high
amid concern steps to cool property prices will drag on economic
growth. Valuations on the gauge dropped to 8.9 times projected
12-month earnings on April 12, the lowest level since Dec. 13
and less than the seven-year average of 15.8, data compiled by
Bloomberg show.

Fixed-asset investment excluding rural households grew 20.9
percent in the January-to-March period from a year earlier, the
statistics bureau reported. That compared with the 21.3 percent
median estimate in a Bloomberg survey and a 21.2 percent gain in
the first two months of 2013. Retail sales in March rose 12.6
percent from a year earlier, meeting estimates.

Premier Li Keqiang said the nation should pay attention to
the quality and efficiency of development as it seeks to
guarantee “reasonable” economic growth, China National Radio
reported yesterday.

Gold Tumbles

Cosco Shipping fell 3.9 percent to 3.49 yuan, the lowest
close since Dec. 6. The company reported a first-quarter loss of
45.1 million yuan, ($7.29 million), compared with a profit of
3.8 million yuan a year earlier.

Trading volumes in the Shanghai composite were 30 percent
lower than the 30-day today, according to data compiled by
Bloomberg. Ten-day volatility on the gauge was at 7.9, near the
lowest level since January 2008, the data showed.

The iShares FTSE China 25 Index Fund, the largest Chinese
exchange-traded fund in the U.S., fell 0.7 percent to $36 on
April 12, rising 1 percent for the week.

Suntech Power Holdings Co., whose main unit was forced into
bankruptcy after defaulting on a $541 million bond repayment
last month, jumped 80 percent to 75 cents, the steepest weekly
advance on record. While the solar-cell maker had the biggest
gain on the Bloomberg China-US gauge for the week, it is still
down 60 percent from this year’s high reached Jan. 16.